BR proposes two projects for fund from 3rd Indian LoC

Bangladesh Railway has proposed two projects to get fund from the 3rd line of credit (LoC), which India has recently proposed to Bangladesh.
The projects are Monsur Ali station at Sirajganj (next to Bangabandhu Bridge) to Bogra dual-gauge track development project and Darshana-Iswardi Inland Container Depot development project, sources said.
They said the Indian authorities had earlier rejected the first project from the list of eligible projects under the 2nd LoC. The BR was, however, trying to get fund from the European Investment Bank (EIB).
"The EIB has agreed in principal to fund the project," said an official, preferring not to be named.
He said the project has been listed again for the Indian credit line for 'reasons unknown'.
He said implementation of the project would now take longer time than expected as the 3rd LoC would take more time to be finalised.
India provided a credit of US$ 1.2 billion under the first LoC and $ 2.0 billion under the 2nd, but many projects under both the two LoCs could not be finalized yet while fund disbursements delayed by several years.
Officials said the two proposed projects for the 3rd LoC were considered important to improve the railway connectivity and cargo handing in the northern part of the country as well as improve timing and services.
The Indian authorities guided preparing the list of projects through prioritising infrastructure and poverty alleviation, and considering that such projects could play an important role in boosting regional communication.
The dual-gauge project will reduce the distance between the Bangabandhu Bridge to Bogra by 130-kilometre as Bogra-bound trains now operate via Iswardi.
BR officials said the rail track development project has been dropped from the list under 2nd LoC due to high expenditure - nearly 40 per cent of the total credit amount.
Meanwhile, the Economic Relations Division (ERD) has invited all concerned ministries to send project proposals to be listed under the 3rd LoC as the Ministry of External Affairs of India earlier requested Bangladesh to identify and finalise projects for its fresh credit line.
ERD sources said some eight projects have so far been proposed with a demand for more than $ 1.0 billion.
Of those projects, three were proposed from the ministry of shipping and one each from the ministries of water resources and, civil aviation and tourism, and one from Bangladesh Economic Zones Authority.
The 3rd LoC is expected to be announced during Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's upcoming visit to India.
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